cloth·ier \ˈklōthyə(r), -thēə-\noun (-s) Etymology: Middle English, alteration of earlier clother, from cloth (I) + -er 1.obsolete: a maker of cloth 2.archaic: a fuller of cloth 3. a.: a retailer of cloth and often also a tailor b.: a retailer of men's clothes 4.: one that covers with cloth the steel drawing rollers of textile machines